Fallout: Assignment Texas
by NCRrangerBrony
Summary: Daniel Tate, a mercenary, and his brother travel into the wastes with two employers. Through a series of events a horrifying plot is uncovered that puts every living creature in the Texas wastes in peril, and it's up to Daniel and his companions to put a stop to it.
1. Intro

Intro

War. War never the late 21st century the human race waged its last great war, the war of the over decades by the Earths dwindling non-renewable petroleum deposits, and tensions between the United States and China, the conflict reached its peak in October of 2077.

On October 23rd 2077 all hell broke loose, and the communist state of China launched a nuclear warhead at Washington DC.

Beijing, Toronto, Los. Angeles, New Delhi, and London were also destroyed in less than ten minutes. In two hours all cities with a population of over 100,000 were destroyed, and the people of the world burned.

Those who survived did so in massive underground vaults. Over 500,000 people were put into the vaults, but unknown to the residents the vaults were never designed to save anyone. They were rigged social experiments, like Vault 21 which was filled with compulsive gamblers and Vault 43 which was populated by 20 men, 10 women, and one panther.

For almost 200 years the vaults remained closed to the outside world. Then in 2210 the first vaults opened to the harsh wasteland and humanity took its first steps into the poisoned world.

The residents of Vault 32 left their vault in Southern Texas to form the small community of Texalt. The town has a strong caravan influence and is quickly becoming wealthier. The residents of Texalt seem to have a bright future ahead of them, but things in the Texas wasteland are far from peaceful, because war never changes.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Making the Deal

I hate the heat. No wait let me rephrase, I despise the heat with a passion. The one thing I find myself wondering most is who decided to make it this damn hot. I kicked at the dirt that had accumulated on the steps of my brother's general store, and took a swig from my Nuka Cola bottle in a futile attempt to get rid of the suns brutal rays.

Our town has the unfortunate circumstance of being mostly metal so the sun does have a very heavy influence. Texalt and most of the surrounding communities originated from Vault 37. Our vault was the focus of a social experiment that had wild animals roaming the halls. Due to this fact our Atrium and living quarters all had plants and running rivers through out the areas.

In time our residents trained most of the creatures into helping with the daily tasks. This aspect hasn't been lost in our towns today. In the Coron fields you can see elephants pulling plows and wolves watching the Raider slaves. In the mining town of Silver moles and badgers help dig for ores and coal.

In Texalt we have many Pack Brahmin moving the heavy equipment and hawks as messengers. Of the many towns I've seen in the Texas wastes we aren't a half bad settlement.

My brother Phil runs the Crate, Bag, and Barrel supply store; he's one of the first stops that the caravans go to. He has everything from weapons to scrap metal, and for 20 caps you can use his workbench.

I myself am not really into the salesman gig; I stand out here all day because the caravans know that I'm the best guard this side of the coast. With my .22 rifle and .44 magnum I can keep even the hardiest raiders at bay.

I have a special hatred for the Pit Vipers who like to attack our caravans along the route to New Woodlands (our main suppliers of fuel). They take prisoners alive and do God knows what to them. We only find the shriveled remains in the dessert.

To the West is the mining town of Silver that supplies us with the rare gemstones that the eccentric buy for themselves.

Finally, to the South-West is Coron. They have an interesting way of getting their work done. For all the Raiders that the Mercs (Including myself) take alive we are paid 30 caps and they are taken as slaves for any number of years, but the system is fair and if they show that they can change their ways they are released from their chains and given a place in the community.

I just hate being bored out of my mind during the times between escorts. I often wander into the wastes in search of critters to use as target practice. Geckos are my favorite, because I can skin the meter and a half long bastards and tan their hides for a good sum of caps.

My boredom quickly melted away as I saw a young woman approaching the store. I stopped leaning on my .22 and righted myself and examined our potential customer.

She walked towards me with a stride and stance that indicated she wouldn't be taking anyone's Brahmin shit. Her face was fair yet weathered from obvious hard work and her tanned skin indicated she had done so under the same sun that tortured me day after day. Her hair (which I assumed when let down, fell down her back) had been pulled into a tight bun of dirty corn silk and she wore a black cowboy (or cowgirl) hat with a thin strip of red velvet stretched around the crown.

As she got closer she took a small glance at me and I saw that above one of her amber colored eyes she had a scar separating her eyebrow into two sections. Although the glance was swift I could swear she had spent five minutes examining me.

I reached over and pulled the screen door open for her and noticed the .23 Glock she had strapped to her right thigh. We entered the store and I couldn't help but examine her figure. She was toned for sure only a few inches shorter than myself; a nice curved shape was about her and when she walked her arms stayed close enough to that gun for her comfort.

She approached the counter and hit the bell that called my brother from the back room. He came around the corner looking only slightly annoyed at the fact that someone had interrupted something important. His irritability quickly melted away and he threw on his salesman mask and smile.

"Welcome to the Crate, Bag, and Barrel supply store. Were you looking for anything specific?" He said every word with a healthy dose of smiling.

"Yes, I need some ammo for this." She un-clipped her weapon and set it on the wooden counter for Phil to examine.

"Right then, let me grab that from the back." More smiles and he was gone around the corned and I heard him go out the back door to go to the shed.

When the door shut she turned on her heel and looked at me again. I could tell she wasn't just here for the bullets. "How much does it cost to hire you for a job?" she said. I told myself not to respond in a stupid manor.

"Well it would depend on where it was you wanted to go." I congratulated myself on my formal forwardness.

"You ever heard of a place called the Junkyard?" she responded.

I had in fact heard of The Junkyard. It was the result of years of debris and junk being swept by the winds into the barren dessert that was once Galveston Bay. It was very dangerous due to the Raider camps all along the edges of it, and from the South rouge Deathclaws had been spotted. If she wanted me to escort her there that would be a good deal of caps for me.

I exhaled slowly and then told her my price. "500 caps and my guns and skills are yours. You do know how dangerous that area is right ma'am?" I hoped that last part wasn't too unprofessional.

"I do know and so does my father. When your brother gets back with my ammo we'll talk further." After that she was silent and we waited for Phil to get back. When he returned with her ammo she had a similar conversation. She let us know that we were to meet her at the East side of town at sunrise for more information.

As she left I couldn't help myself and asked her name. "Alice West" she replied and then she was gone and I was back to kicking dirt.

Waking up in the morning isn't my problem, getting off my cot; however, is a different thing entirely. I rolled myself off onto the grimy floor and stretched until my muscles felt content to function properly. I pushed myself up and stood to look at my reflection in the cracked dusty mirror in front of me.

I wasn't bad looking for someone who spent their life getting shot at. My light brown hair was a tangled mess, as usual. My nose was oddly shaped due to having broken it when I was younger and not getting it set straight.

The most defining feature on my face had to be my eyes, the light blue color matched well with the rat's nest I was constantly trying to tame. After making sure no one had disfigured me in the middle of the night I slipped on my jeans and fell back to the floor to do my morning push-up regimen.

1….2….3….4…. I had certainly found that doing this each morning helped improve my strength and wake me up (that and a shot of whiskey) 13…14….15…16…. That Alice girl had certainly been something else. I wasn't sure what I found appealing about her. I told myself desperately that it wasn't the curves. I had to remember she was a client and that these kinds of thoughts were not to be thought…..38….39….40…..41…I quickly stood up and turned my radio to the Lone Star station just in time to hear Lucy start her morning greeting to the wasteland.

_"Good morning, all you fellow survivors out there! The sun is shining, the rads are ticking, and I myself feel like I could take down a whole army of Super Mutants! Before we start our music selection lets head over to Archimedes for the news!"_

Lucy certainly had the most attractive voice in the wasteland I could listen to her for the rest of my life and be happy. Her assistant was less charismatic...75…76…77…78

_"Thank you Lucy. Today we are having quite a bit of Super Mutant activity from the Houston ruins; they are strong, and armed. Stay away. Also a gang known as the Pit Vipers is causing trouble by attacking caravans and dragging their operators away alive. Always keep that gun loaded ladies and gentlemen. Now back to Lucy." _ Thank God….

_Well done Archimedes I think I may have heard some humor in that. Now let me ask what is better than hearing a sad tragic tale? A sad tragic tale that's worse than yours. Take it away Marty…"_

Marty Robins "El Paso" started seeping out of the radio and I was done with my push ups. 200 in a morning weren't bad for me, but I would have liked to do more. This morning however I had to wake up my brother who was still sleeping. I clicked off the radio as the singer hit his high note, and went into the hall.

When I went into Philips room I wasn't surprised to find several empty wine bottles by the side of the bed. I figured he'd have one hell of a hangover today so I decided to screw with him.

I went out to the shed and filled up the bucket with water and crept like an evil mastermind back into the house. There I pulled the curtains to Philips room open and the sun poured in to reveal my brother on his love bed that he had picked off a wanderer for 100 caps.

I lifted up the water bucket and dumped his bath on him.

He scrambled out of the bed and hit the wooden walls in his panic. After trying to stand he was tangled in his sheets and fell on his face. He looked up at me and the bucket with squinted eyes and then quickly became one pissed off shopkeeper.

I quickly left the room and closed the door behind me (which he slammed into) only to hear my brother use the most profane words I'd heard in a long time. I held the door shut and waited for him to calm down.

When he did I told him to get ready and meet me in the kitchen I was replied with a low groan of contemplation.

I went back to my room and finished getting dressed, filled my guns and belts with the appropriate ammo, and wandered into the kitchen. My dear sibling threw a piece of cereal at my head. I let him have his "revenge" and then I loaded the toaster with a steak.

I wasn't one for petty breakfasts and preferred meat to grains. It made me feel full. That and I was a very firm believer that those Sugar Bombs Philip ate were full of radiation.

"So are we still gonna take that woman up on her offer, Daniel?" He asked. "I would hope so or I'll have to kick your ass for that wake-up call" I could tell he had a major hang-over and I gave him some water.

"Drink that, you're dehydrated." I may not be a scientist, but I had read enough pre-war books to know a few odds and ends. I turned on the radio to hear the end of a song about a scandal and Lucy came back on.

_"I have been thinking my fine babes and you know what I'd love? I trip to the beach. That's right! If one of you nice young men who listen to me would come give me a day off to go to our murky coastline, well then we'd have a good ol time. Speaking of the ocean let's go "Somewhere Beyond the Sea"_

"I tell ya Phil one of these days I'm gonna meet that chick." I realized maybe this wasn't the thing to say to my highly annoyed brother.

"Oh, yea I'll be there to make sure that goes over real well." He gave me a smile that could be compared to a Raiders jaw line.

We headed out of our house just as the sun was starting to fill all of the sky with its luminescence. Our home wasn't bad in terms of homes in the wastes.

The house opened into the Living room where I had tried to make our furniture not so grimy. Several vases displaying reeds and cat tails were put in the corners of the room. To the right of the living room was the kitchen it wasn't special in any way other than the creature pelts and hides I had on the walls as trophies. So far I had a blazing rust colored Gecko skin, the spotted and bumpy hide of a mole rat, a pair of cazador wings, and several coyote pelts.

My room is above the kitchen and Phil's room is just down the hall, connecting to the supply store. In terms of bottle caps my brother and I were the wealthiest men in Texalt (aside from Max the bar owner). We usually pulled in 200 caps a day. This was enough to sustain us and for us to have a small fortune in our safe behind the stairs in case anything happened.

Our life here wasn't bad and sometimes I had considered dropping the gun and picking up the salesman piece. I just liked the feeling of the kickback that the excreted when I pulled the trigger.

As we approached Max's saloon, Broken Dreams, we were approached by three men. They were new to town as I would have recognized their faces. They looked to be in their mid-20s all had dark longer hair. The leader (or so I presumed due to his facial tattoos) stepped forward and pulled a knife on my brother. His two lackeys behind him pulled out knives of their own and took a battle ready stance. I felt so sorry I was going to have to really hurt these boys, but something about the sly smile on tattoo face told me otherwise.

That's when I saw the fourth boy on the roof of the abandoned post office. He had an impressive sniper rifle aimed at my head. Well this did certainly make things more interesting. My brother stepped forward.

"Good morning gentlemen what can we help you with?" Son-of-a-gecko was trying to talk his way out of this. For a man with a hangover he had balls.

"Cut the shit or my friend up there will blow you ugly head off" The tattooed thug told my brother. Well so much for negotiating.

I padded some dust onto Phil's shoes so he'd know I was planning something. As the leader shouted orders to us I took my rifle off slowly and set it on the ground. Then I started laying my magnum with it.

Tattoo face, looked cocky and I knew this would work. As he turned to saw something to his buddies I pushed Phil behind a mailbox and grabbed my magnum shooting the lackey to the right of tattoo face.

I felt a bullet fly past the side of my head, damn. I grabbed tattoo faces arm as he swung his blade at me and twisted it back as his sniper friend shot again embedding an armor piercing round into their leader.

His body went limp and I continued to use it as a shield. Ha, this guy may have been only a slight bump in my road, but his reinforced armor was stopping those bullets. I looked over and saw the other man attacking Phil. In return to knives my brother pulled out his hammer and was beating at the kids legs. Yea Phil would be fine.

I was doing a strange dance with the body of the smelly leader as I made my way to the door of the post office. I was not gonna let some inexperienced Raiders get the better of me today.

When I reached the doors I threw the body against the wall and went inside. It was still gloomy due to the windows being boarded up and I could taste something filthy in the air. I saw black mold growing along the walls and remembered why no one resided here. I slowly crept up to the roof and had the nice surprise of seeing that the idiot had left the door open.

I swiftly swung around and fired a shot into the air, only to see no one on the roof. I turned to go back inside, but I was greeted by a rifle butt to my face that I was half sure broke my nose again. The sniper was looking down on me and I could see that disturbingly his teeth had been filed to points.

"Ready to die you little motha" I was tempted to answer, but figured it would not increase my chances of survival. I felt the barrel pushed to my forehead. Then I heard the shot ring out and a warm liquid cover my face. Well if this was dying it didn't hurt.

"Hey you idiot your not dead" I had never been happier to hear Phil's voice. I opened my eyes and saw the sniper on the ground and he was a head shorter. Phil stood over him with my .22 in hand rather looking like a bad ass.

Philip grabbed me with a strong callused hand and pulled me up. I could feel the snipers blood running down my face. I grabbed my canteen and started drinking. I felt Phil lift it up and the water poured over my face. I heard him snicker and walk away.

This morning was certainly turning into an interesting affair.

We actually managed to get to our destination without anymore disturbances. I pulled all the raiders onto the dirt ground and cut their right thumb off to show people they were such.

In the distance I saw Alice and her father waiting, she was tapping her foot impatiently waiting for us. As we got closer I got to examine her father, and boy did I not want to make him mad.

He was an average height, with graying hair and what I could only describe as a Wildman's beard. His hair had been originally a light brown much like my own. He was tanned and muscular like his daughter. He was wearing overalls with his name tagged down the side "Jonathan West". His hat was straw and had obviously been worn with much love. The final thing I noticed about his was the eye patch covering his right eye and a grisly scar peeking from under it.

He stepped forward and shook my hand firmly there was a pleasant smile across his face. One trait his daughter didn't share. After shaking my brother's hand in a similar manner he explained what we would be doing.

"Now boys I'll cut right to the chase. You've heard of the Junkyard. I need to get to the South side of it to pick up something that an associate of mine lost while he was battling raiders. Now I know the route there is dangerous that's why I have you" He wagged a finger at me. "Now for you" Another wag this time directed towards my brother. "You're coming because you know profit when you see it an I want help scavenging. You will be working with me mainly while your brother an my baby girl will be shooting anything that I find unpleasant. I've heard both of your prices and I can pay it willingly, you can also have any supplies you find that I don't need. Sound good fellas?"

To me this deal sounded fair enough and as long as we really hugged the Junkyard as we approached the South we wouldn't have any Deathclaws tearing us a new one. "I'm in" I said.

My brother looked a little apprehensive but he agreed as well. Jonathan raised his arms and laughed, then proceeded to shake our hands again. "Well boys that is fantastic" He said. "Now my names Jonathan, but call me John or I'll shoot ya…. Haha, just messing with ya." I saw his daughter roll her eyes "This is Alice you met her yesterday I'm sure?" I nodded and realized for the first time I was still covered with blood.

John seemed to notice too and his smile slowly faded from his face. "So what's that then" He motioned to the stains up and down my clothes.

"We had some trouble with a few raiders on out way here and we were running late as it was so we couldn't go back to wash up" And just like that his smile was back on him.

"Well then I guess that show y'all are dependable, get what you need and find someone to run that store we leave tomorrow."

They turned and left leaving me with Phil who was now desperately trying to decide whom he trusted most to take care of his store.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: The Junkyard and the Pip-Boy

After the morning excitement, I had spent most of the day cleaning my guns for the journey. I was glad that Phil had used my rifle, because my magnums bullets had defects and wouldn't fire if I pulled the trigger. The only reason the raider I shot had died was because the gun launched the bullet slow enough that it spun and continued doing so in his body.

I tested all the bullets for my magnum and found a few that didn't meet my standards. I pried them open and collected the powder inside and put the fine dust in the Tupperware container that I had found under a fridge several months ago.

I was trying to find the components to make an assault carbine with explosive bullets, and my search was rather futile. This was one reason I was actually looking forward to going to the Junkyard, knowing what was there, I was pretty sure I could find the other components I needed.

Carefully, I slid the Tupperware container back into its slot, and I clicked on my radio to listen to my beloved radio hostess for the last time for several weeks. The music flowed out of the speakers and not for the first time I wished there was a wider selection of music. I told myself that if I ever found some records I'd personally deliver them to the Lone Star.

Creeping under the bed I opened the footlocker nestled beneath the tiny cot and pulled out my reinforced leather armor that was still pocketed with holes from my last caravan job. I started patching the holes and remembered the encounter. The bastard had gotten the jump on me and fired his shotgun at too close a range for my liking.

Thankfully the other guard crushed the man's skull with his super sledge. That was six months ago and earlier this morning was the first time I'd been shot at in a long while. "Well more of that in the next few weeks" I thought sullenly.

I was tired and I had to get up early again tomorrow so I settled myself down on my cot and drifted off into a dreamless sleep only penetrated by Lucy's sweet musings.

Ironically I was awakened by Phil in the middle of the night. He had a panicked look about him. I muttered incoherently, something about more sleep. He responded by smashing an empty bottle on the wall.

I was up in an instant after that noise. I quickly put my boots on while Phil explained the problem. Apparently a pack of Gecko's had wandered into town and killed someone. Anyone with guns was trying to clear the buggers out of town.

Loading up my rifle I crept outside with my newly mended armor and started searching for them. I hadn't been hunting long when I heard the distinctive chirping that the scaly brutes made when they felt threatened. I hoped they were scared.

I rounded the corner and came upon two of them. They stood at about 4½ to 5 feet tall and were that strange rusted color that shimmered with their scales as they ran in the moonlight. The first one hissed at its new prey and rushed me. I raised my rifle and fired embedding my shot deep into the beast.

My shot was lucky enough to hit something vital and the beast fell. I saw the life leave the geckos red eyes; its pupil dilated and it was gone. His companion however wasn't finished and charged me at full speed. I shot and missed.

The Gecko launched itself into the air with its hind legs. The small sails on its back and neck flared as its jaw stretched open. As it did so, I could see the two rows of needle sharp teeth. I hate Geckos.

When the little monster bit my arm I felt like blowing my head off. I dropped my rifle and destroyed it with my magnum. Its jaws released from my arm, but it was too late. I waited for the sharp sting that their bites usually caused, but was greeted by something else. An immense pain shot up my arm and buried itself into the root of my brain. I wanted to scream, but found the pain to intense. I could feel the toxin it had relinquished into my blood stream, starting to circulate through my body. I stumbled to the first aid box positioned on the wall and opened it, but I fell to the ground writhing in pain.

My eyesight faded me and through blurred vision I saw something huge move past me as I lay on the ground. It must have ignored me, because I appeared dead, but another Gecko (or at least I think it was a Gecko) that had wandered into the alley was ripped to pieces covering me with more entrails. The unknown creature moved away from my flailing body and out of my sight.

The next thing I saw was someone standing over me. They held a bitter drink to lips and I was barely able to swallow the vile concoction. Then I tasted water. It was fresh and sweet and made the aching in my bones depart. The last thing I knew was Max and Alice starring down at my dysfunctional figure.

My head was spinning. I managed to open my eyes and gaze around the dusty room I was in. Someone had taken me from my house and put me in a dusty shack! I tried to sit up and was overcome by nausea. A well placed bucket was waiting and I retched until my stomach was empty, then retched some more.

At this moment a flood of memories from last night came rushing back to me. I sat up and fought off the new wave of fatigue that rushed over me. I also realized I was out of my armor and my bite had been bandaged and well done as far as medical care goes.

It was apparent that I was in a house (I saw now two doors leading to other rooms.) I wondered who's house I was in. My question was answered by the overalls hanging by a peg on the wall.

I looked around the West's guest room and was impressed at the number of memorabilia from the Enclave scattered about the area. There were posters strewn across the walls praising the organization, tiny figurines of high authorized Enclave members were stacked on shelves, but the most impressive thing, without a doubt, had to have been the enormous suit of remnants power armor.

The first thing that I noticed was that it was huge. I had heard storied at Max's saloon about how fearsome the Enclave soldiers were as they marched into battle. It had an insectoid look about it and there was a soft rhythmic humming coming from the interior of the suit. It was set on a glowing, blue platform that must have had a preserving agent; the suit was free of dust.

What stunned me most was the helmet and how even though I knew there wasn't a soul inside the contraption I could have swore it was looking right through me with it's amber eyes. I slowly stood up and stumbled towards the suit. I reached a tentative had out and….

"I wouldn't do that if I was you." a voice piped up from behind me. I spun fast and reached for my magnum. Panicked to find it not there I scrambled for a door only to have another wave of nausea smash into me like a wall.

As I fell to my hands and knees trying to not pass out I saw Alice approach me quickly. She wrapped one strong arm around my waist and with her other pulled my arm to her neck. She pulled me up and helped me to the bed (with difficulty I could tell).

'Now look, I didn't get Max to help me drag you back here cuz you're handsome." Figures "I really need you with me to make sure my papi don't get himself hurt. So don't go blowing yourself to ash by touching the particle field!" So that's how I had gotten here. I had a lot of questions, but a dumb one reached my lips first.

"What the hell kinda Gecko was that? I've been bit by Geckos before. This was different." I proclaimed. I noticed my throat was raw. My voice sounded strange too.

"I was thinking the same thing there. They looked like regular one I seen round here normally." She said. "That toxin was somthin fierce though. It had you out for three day, and if I hadn't had treated you, well let's just say a piece of the ground is gonna remain solid." Well at least she had some sort of humor. I still had something nagging at the very back of my mind.

"What was that other thing in the ally?" I asked, scared of the answer.

"Other thing?" She asked skeptically.

"Just before I lost it completely I saw something huge move down the alley. It tore a Gecko to pieces like it was nothing. I think now the only reason it didn't kill me was because I was covered in blood." I was very concerned about what I had seen. Nothing and I mean nothing can pull a creature that size to pieces like it was made of sand.

"Well I'm not sure." She responded. "With all the chaos going on the other night it wouldn't surprise me that somethin passed through the town without being seen." I guess that made sense. "I guess that would explain why you were covered with it so badly, took me a few hours to wash you properly." Oh, God I was clean! I was hoping that I wasn't as red as I thought.

She seemed to see my expression however and did something of a giggle, before standing to leave. Then another important matter popped into my head. "Wait what about Phil!" I asked panicked.

She rolled her eyes raising her scar above her eye, "He's fine. Tried to take you back to your place, but I told him you were too weak. I expect him to be around here any moment." As she closed the door she turned "Clothes are in the trunk under the bed come out when you can."

With that I was left alone in the small dusty room and feeling a new appreciation for this girl named Alice.

After another day of rest we were ready to leave with the caravan. I had spent my last day with the West's learning a bit about them.

John was an old soldier for the Enclave. He had been dishonorably discharged for refusing to fire upon a group of civilians. I could respect him for that. When I asked him why he still kept the memorabilia he said, "Some of my best years were spent in the Enclave, although now I realize they were a bunch of pretentious assholes."

He was a hard worker and left early in the morning to start his day and have time for meals. This included continual prepare on the caravans wagon and he had purchased a metal siding for the wagon that the welder had assured would stop most bullets. He had spent most of the day attaching it to the cart. This left me quite a bit of time with Alice.

It didn't take long to figure out Alice had a strained relationship with her father. He was trying to get her to settle down with someone and raise a family; she didn't want any part of it. "For God's sakes Dad I'm only twenty-three!" was what I heard her say the previous night as I had been trying to sleep. When we had been talking it was obvious she loved him, but he also appeared to pester her with it to no end. As it turned out Alice was rather cheerful (when her father wasn't around) and loved to hear about my "Adventures" (as she called them) in the wastes.

I recounted the most interesting tales I could remember. It was actually kinda nice to talk to someone who had spent a good deal of time in the wastes like myself. Phil stopped by for lunch and explained how my bite had brought a big influx of customers to the store. Some thought they were donating to me and others just wanted a good dose on anti-venom.

Now we stood at the edge of town preparing to enter the wastes that beckoned us into its irradiated heart. After several more minutes of preparation we pulled out rags over our faces, smacked our Brahmin, and headed into the dessert.

The wasteland was not pretty to look at. The sand and dust were constantly getting into the eyes and nose; any experienced wastelander knew to have a good pair of goggles. The wind also had a very nasty habit of making even the tiniest objects feel like little bullets in the skin.

I liked to complain about the sun in Texalt, but at least there was shade there. Out here it was five times as bad and it never stopped. By the end of this journey I'd be either tan or sunburnt. We saw several tiny Geckos on the main road that were easily scared by whoops and hollers; there was no need to shoot them.

We had about half of the wagon packed with useful supplies that we would need. There were smaller pistols (in case Phil and John really had to fight), several large containers of purified water that would probably last the entire trip, several different foods that we would all be sharing (although I was eyeing the steak), and finally a crowbar for prying open and locked containers we found.

The crowbar also did good to double as melee weapon if we wanted to conserve ammo. At the end of our first hour we ran into a poor soul who had transformed into a Feral Ghoul.

Ghouls on their own were not bad at all, a little unsightly the first or second time you see them, but they could be even more generous and hospitable than most wastelanders. From what I could guess the radiation made these people lose most of their skin so that their oddly colored muscles would show, it also caused their hair to fall out on most of their scalp and their eyes took on a dull tone of the original color. As I said before most were pleasant and kindly.

Some people however just couldn't cope with the mental strain the transformation took on their minds and went insane. They would kill every non-ghoul they encountered even their own family members.

The Ghoul approached us and let out a shriek and ran as fast as it could at the caravan. I grabbed the crowbar (not wanting to waste a shot) and raised it back. When the former human came into range I held back for one second just as my father had taught me smashing Radroaches. I swung the piece of metal as hard as I could and let the momentum do the rest.

Metal collided with frail brittle ribs and I was splashed with the creature's blood. It hit the ground hard where it shook and grasped onto the hem of my jeans desperately clawing at the life ebbing away from within.

"I'm sorry" I told the ghoul as it looked at my face with pure hate in its eyes. After several more seconds it was still and I forced the hand still clutched to my pants to release. I really was sorry for this poor person they had once been someone and unlike raiders they didn't want to do what they did.

I reached into the ghouls pockets and pulled out a pencil and a few bullets. I carried the bullets with me as I approached the wagon. This did not go over well with Alice at all. She stomped up to me and snatched the few bullets away and threw them into the dessert.

I gave her a look of shock and she replied with a complete turn of her back to me. I had no idea what her problem was. I didn't enjoy picking things off of dead corpses, but sometimes it had to be done.

I decided to drop it and we continued walking in an uncomfortable silence that I didn't like. I sucked in breath and approached Alice.

"I'm sorry that doing that upset you." I said carefully. I was really going to have to watch my words here as to not have her at my throat for the entire job.

"Look its fine." She said. "Really I can't blame you it makes sense I just… well… it is one thing to raid the body of a raider. I just can't… not ghouls."

"Ok I'll leave them alone, but I will do what I have to do to protect you and the others." She nodded and, I was comfortable again and returned to my position. Although now I wondered what had happened to Alice to make her feel that way.

After several more hours into the trip we found our first sign of trouble further ahead. What lay before us was strange even for a radiation damned world.

It was a snakeskin. It looked normal in every way, except that it was nearly 18ft long and all around it were bones of creature the snake had consumed. Old pieces of clothing were stuck to the drying corpses that still had tattered bits of tough flesh attached to joints.

I was really wishing I had those explosive rounds. I could see faces of concern and worry from my employers. We decided it would be better to move on and left the bodiless horror behind us.

That night as we prepared to make camp a strange low drawl could be heard coming over the low dunes of debris and sand. "What do you suppose that is?" Phil asked. The sound seemed to be going farther away.

"Not sure." John said "Could be any sort of dog or coyote" The sounds were soon very distant memories at the backs of our minds and I stood to take the first watch while the other three settled in.

After thirty minutes of silence and the occasional insect I heard the all too familiar sounds of gunshots. Squinting my eyes, in the darkness, I could see the tiny flecks of light go on and off as bullets were fired. This wasn't my fight.

However, if the winners of this fight were raiders, I wanted to be ready. I sat with my rifle and waited until all but two guns were blazing. As the one farthest to me stopped shooting first I knew someone had won the bloody affair. I waited for the inevitable shuffle of feet in the desert sand. No feet came however and there were no more disturbances for the rest of my watch.

I shook Alice awake at what I believed to be about one in the morning. She relinquished my rifle from me and stood at the edge of camp waiting for any disturbances of her own. I crawled into the slightly soft sleeping bag and closed my eyes, hand still clutched on my magnum.

Frank. How is it that in three hours I could learn to hate a name so much?

He was the man who had apparently won the gunfight I had seen the night before. The scavenger was found sleeping in the back of our wagon, his fight was so "harrowing" he decided to take a little snooze next to our water (He helped himself to some of that too).

When he awoke, he was greeted by Alice's Glock pressed against his forehead. His hands shot up as if they were going to protect his skull from a bullet.

"Hey, hey, hey! Lady for Christ sake lower the damn gun!" He was trying desperately to disappear into the wagons wood. "I was just looking for a place to crash is that so bad! I mean really!" Alice fired a shot into the sky; it was that serious to her.

"You've put us into even worse trouble than a swarm of Cazadors!" She was practically screaming at him. "You have essentially killed us!" John took her shoulders and pulled her away from the smelly man. (Strange considering he had used another container of water to bathe.)

"What did that little twit do?" Phil asked as he had just seen the short fat man in the back of our cart. He had no idea what was going on.

"He drank a gallon of water!" Alice pointed her gun at him again and it took both John and I both to pull her back. I had to admit the little bastard had put us in quite a horrid situation. We had lost at least two containers worth of water that we were intending on rationing it out for three weeks. We were now five days without drinking water and I wasn't in the mood to go several days in the hot sun without a drop of water to drink.

"What do you want me to do with him John?" I asked still with a firm grip on Alice. I hoped I could hurt this low life. John looked at the man and slowly asked him a question.

"You realize what you've done boy?" His voice had turned very gruff and threatening. "Now I wouldn't mind if you had just drank a little, but you've wasted a good deal of it on your still smelly hide." The man looked up at John and stammered.

"I'm really sorry about this sir. Names Frank. Frank Stool, I'll make this up to you in any way I can. Just don't let the crazy merc chick shoot me." He shot a dirty look at Alice and I almost let go of her.

"Several things here, Frank. One. That is my daughter whom you referred to as "crazy merc girl". Two. I'll take you up on that offer. Now stand up and walk with us." Wait, wait, wait….

"What!" Alice asked her dad." We can't take this water filching thief with us." She had a very good point.

"We're gonna drop him off at the Junkyard. There he can find himself some supplies and be on his way. We aren't gonna hurt him, but we are gonna make him work." John said. "Now listen here boy when we get to the Junkyard you're gonna find me the biggest Snipe you can find, understand? "

Frank nodded as fast as his little head could bounce. I also couldn't believe John was going to send him on a death mission although I didn't feel sorry for him. I had heard of Snipe hunts before and the idea was hilarious. Send a guy on a hunt to find the "Snipe" and don't let him in until he finds it. Funny thing is Snipes don't exist.

Normally this would mean that the victim would sit outside until morning when his friends would clap him on the back and congratulate him on a successful hunt. Sending Frank into the Junkyard full of raiders, deathclaws, and eyebots; meant he was probably going to die.

I decided not to say anything and I let go of Alice (I had figured I'd held her back long enough, any longer and it may have been cuddling). So again we departed to our destination with a new and annoying shadow following close in toe.

For several more days we traveled through the harsh dessert. The sun got worse now that we had to ration water; both John and Phil seemed to be having the time of their lives chatting with each other while we were stuck behind the wagon with fat smelly Frank, kept trying to convince us to let him go the entire time.

The third day after we had found the little rat he began telling us his life story as if we were new friends. After an hour of this I put my magnum to his head and dared him to continue; after this he didn't say another word.

Five days after Frank, we saw the Junkyard ahead of us. It was an incredible yet horrifying sight. There were huge oil rig platforms and towers stacked like sinister towers in the center of the great structure. The rest of the area was littered with broken homes and old offices amidst light poles and cars. Boxes ranging from two to thirty feet also covered the ground, and there was paper everywhere. It clung to the old cabinets and tables that had long since blown out of ruined homes.

Toxic barrels full of radioactive material were visible and they had burned a hole in the ground that they rested on. I could see a small eyebot wandering amongst the trash and debris. It floated precariously above the ground as if it might malfunction and crash at any minute. It floated towards us and I readied the rifle.

It hovered past us blasting music and almost appeared to be bobbing to the tune. All the sudden the sullen voice of Archimedes took over.

_Attention, Attention! This is a public service announcement! A strange group of creatures has been spotted along the South coast of Texas. If you see them hide. Don't run. Don't fight. Hide. They howl. This is Archimedes warning you of danger._

Well that was an ominous warning. I remembered the disturbing yips and howls that we had heard several nights ago. Well worrying wasn't gonna get the job done. I kept my rifle raised in case anything decided to raise its ugly head.

When we reached the edge of the looming structure it became apparent that there were useful things here as well. I saw several first-aid boxes amongst the ruble and I rushed to them. I opened the first one and grabbed a single stimpak. There were three bottles of dirty water that I didn't desire drinking.

The other box had a better stash inside. There were three stinpaks, a single bottle of Rad-X, and five bottles of fresh water! I grabbed all of the supplies and stuffed them in my bag. I walked back to the cart and added the water to our supply and put the Rad-X and stimpacks to our own first-aid box.

"That's a really good stash you found there." Phil exclaimed. I looked to smelly Frank and realized he was sleeping in the back of the cart again. I looked at John and he nodded to me with a sly smile. I walked back to the ruins and grabbed a bottle of dirty water and walked back to the cart.

I poured it on the ground and lightly pulled Frank to the edge of the cart I walked to the Brahmin and slapped its rear. It rushed forward and the smelly thief rolled into the mud and was up faster than my brother on a good deal. "Time to find that Snipe, boy." John said.

Frank scrambled to the edge of the Junkyard and looked tentatively back at us. "Well go on." Alice said. Frank wandered into the mass of steel and wood covered in mud and sweat. I watched him go until I could no longer see his shiny bald head.

"Now that that's finished with, let's get to business. Now be looking for a container of metal. It's gonna be emitting a bluish light fom the sides and top. So let's go!" I broke off from rest of the group and wandered under a broken doorway. After several minutes I had gotten several more stimpaks and had collected about a hundred bottle caps. I turned around a crumbled wall and was surprised to see a box that looked very curious.

It was metal but it made a curious beeping sound that somehow managed to escape the metal confines. I approached it slowly scared of a trap of some kind. I grabbed a piece of metal and set it under the lid. I quickly flipped the box open and backed away. No "Boom" greeted me and I stepped forward.

Inside the box was a curious device that was making the beeping noise. It was shaped in a cylinder like fashion and had a screen attached to the front. It looked extremely heavy and it had several knobs attached under the screen (one of which, labeled stats, was making the beeping). I picked it up and was surprised to find it lighter than expected. Inscribed on the side was lettering that said Pip-Boy; underneath it model 3000.

On the screen was a small man smiling and shooting a thumbs up with the words "Awaiting Request" beneath him. I set the Pip-Boy on the ground and looked in the box again. There was also a glove labeled "Comfort" and an instruction book. I grabbed the glove and slipped it over my left hand. It felt comfortable enough and it glowed slightly. I was a bit startled but got over the shock quickly and picked up the instruction manual.

"Slip on Glove". Well that's done. "Attach Pip-Boy to Left Arm." I picked up the Pip-Boy and attached it onto my left arm. I heard mechanized whirring and the device adjusted itself to my arm. I felt the soft pads tighten and the screen blinked rapidly. I looked down at it and saw that the screen now had a pad with the instructions "Enter Name" present. I did so and "Daniel Tate" flashed above the smiling man who was now stretched in a jumping jack position with little health notifications beneath each of the limbs, torso, and head. Well I guess this is useful.

Before I could examine the rest of the interesting features the Pip-Boy 3000 had to offer a small compass looking device appeared at the bottom. I examined it and noticed an amber colored peg moving in a zigzag pattern coming closer. All the sudden Frank was in front of me heaving and panting.

I approached him and asked casually "So you found the Snipe?" He looked up at me and took a deep breath and began to speak. Before he could start I was attracted to the red peg moving towards us as well.

I looked up just in time to see Frank's head explode and his body crumpling to the ground that was now staining black with blood. Where his body had once blocked from view I saw three well armed raiders with heavy metal armor. The lead was holding a Dessert Eagle and it was still pointing as he aimed it at my heart.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Bone Smasher

I was royally screwed. Behind me was a crumbling stone wall that taunted my escape. I looked more at my surroundings. To my left was another wall with a poster plastered on it warning me of the dangers of corporate espionage. Frank, a now twitching headless body, lay before me and to my right was another escape route. Both of them were the only paths away, and were (of course) blocked by the raiders.

Carefully, I took a step back and the leader placed a finger on the trigger. I know saw that she was female, "Oh, was he your friend?" She cooed in a false sympathetic tone. She was the leader obviously and she was well armored. She wore what appeared to be a combat suit with two knives strapped to her thighs. Her face may have been pretty except for the fact that it was scarred in too many wrong places. Her hair was filthy and was a deep red color and I now noticed she liked chewing on, ew.

Her gun was very impressive for raider standards. It was a Dessert Eagle with a bronze eagle that had literally been cast for the gun. The wings formed the handle and where the empty barrel should have been was an eagle head that was screaming silently at me. Wow it was shiny.

"Actually you did me a favor by killing the bastard." I said. I was cornered and I needed to find a way to pry an opening. "That is quite a magnificent gun you have there, where did you get it." Another two raiders appeared behind her.

The leader smirked "Well it was a gift from a friend and I'm glad you know how to talk to a superior earns a few points in my book. Say, why don't you come back with us? We could make things very, very interesting for you." I realized this was an order and not a request. "Now put down that nasty gun and come with me sweetie." God her voice was horrid from that fake sweetness.

"Understood" I set down my rifle and hoped they didn't see my magnum under my shirt. If I was really lucky they would be stupid and not search me. I could shoot them in the back when I had a nice opportunity.

At that moment the most impossible thing happened. A black wave was moving across the ground towards us. It was a swarm and it consisted of about five hundred Radroaches and they were moving fast.

The raiders looked panicked and I heard cries of "Screw this!" and "Oh hell no!" as the lesser raiders ran as fast as they could. The leader didn't take her eyes off me. "I will put this in your head if you try anything funny now run!" I agreed to this.

I grabbed my rifle and ran behind the raiders. This chase didn't last long however and soon they were upon us. The first few ignored us and ran past, but soon the full wave would get us soon. I dared a look back and saw the massive black wave and the now fleshless body of Frank on the ground. I wasn't going to be that!

Frantically, I stopped and plucked a grenade from my belt and threw it near the skeletal wreckage of a car. The explosion was extremely loud, and hot; I felt debris fly past my head. Fortunatly many of the bugs were burned to a crisp and avoided the light. I took a stance in the glow of the burning red flower that was now spreading away from me.

The first shot hit a stray Radroach scuttling away from the fire. I took several more and then heard a scream from behind me. I turned and saw the leader being attacked by several of the bugs; her gun had been knocked away from her. One of her companions lay next to her leg dead, and the others had taken off to save themselves. I took aim and fired on the bugs. They were easy enough to dispatch and soon they were off her. She ran towards me in the flame and I cleared a path.

When she was in the light she turned to me. "Good shooting. This doesn't change a thing though, and don't think for a moment that we are friends." Haha I was starting to like this one.

"Oh, trust me I don't want your friendship." This was true; being friends with a raider was not a good thing to have in the wastes. You can't trust em. "Just keep quiet and let the swarm pass."

"So why did you save my ass then?" I was actually wondering this myself. I didn't like her, I wasn't attracted to her, she was going to try to kill me, and no less she was a raider.

After a moment I responded. "I like to think I'm just kind. Now that you are no longer in control I'm going to make a deal with you." She sighed and sat in the dirt. "You have two choices both mean you'll give your weapons to me. Your first choice is giving me the weapons and I'll let you go into the wastes."

"Are you crazy? I'd be torn to pieces out there!" She had a desperate look in her eye. So the sadistic raiders could feel fear. I really wanted to mess with her head some, but she was already a burden and I didn't feel like making her a nervous wreck too.

"Your second choice is to come with me and I'll escort you to Coron where you will work for several years as a slave then be released into the community." She was looking at me with pure contempt and hate.

"I hate you good hearted bastards. Oh let's let the raider prove she won't shoot us in the back and let her go. I'll spell it for you I-D-I-O-T-S. I'd rather brave the wastes than join some reformat camp." I shrugged my shoulder and pushed her into the passing swarm. After a few seconds I pulled her out. "I hate a lot of things, but you! I swear, you are the worst thing I have ever had to listen to! I'd rather pull my teeth out!"

"Hmmm your teeth seemed bad enough already." I said. She reached for her knife and realized it wasn't there. I dangled it in front of her and strapped it to my belt. She made a growling sound and I sat in the dirt across from her and watched her chew her hair as we both waited for the swarm to move on.

The swarm scuttled around the area for about two hours then moved back into the Junkyard. In those hours I got to play with my new Pip-Boy. It had three main sections to it, Stats, Items, and Data.

The Stats section was essentially an update on how my over-all condition was. The little man had a big smile on his face that told me I was in very good health, even if I was a tad irradiated. It also appeared to add stimpaks to my body without even having to inject them. There were warnings for crippling, dehydration, starvation, and even sleep. This was truly meant to keep someone alive

There was a mini section labeled S.P.E.C.I.A.L, this is what told me what I was best at apparently. My Strength was a six; Perception and Endurance were both at a seven. The Charisma was a five while Intelligence was an amazing eight. Finally my Agility was another six and Luck was at a five. I hoped these weren't bad stats. They seemed good to me.

My Items section was what one would think it to be. It showed how much I could carry with ease (210lbs) anymore and I wouldn't be able to run. It also displayed the number of bottle caps I had (I wasn't sure how it knew this exactly, but it did). Of course it also showed my .22, my magnum, and the raiders knives that I had. I had picked up thirteen stimpaks and had close to ten Rad-Away.

The last section was data and it was empty except for the map of the Texas wasteland. I could see the Junkyard, Texalt, New Woodlands, Coron, and Silver. Everything else was empty. I knew there were places out there though. Also to my great surprise I had Lone Star Radio on my Pip-Boys airwaves!

A loud grunt had averted my attention from the Pip-Boy. The raider was pointing to the swarm, or what was left of it. Most of them had by that time left so even though the compass on the Pip-Boy still lit up with red I knew we were safe to go.

So, we set off back to my camp I was praying that my employers were still alive. If not I was going to be in serious crap. "My name's Ares if you were curious." She kept getting more and more amusing. "You know that was a God right."

"I did. He was the son of Zeus and Hera. Ares was God of war, but what I bet you didn't know was that commanders not only prayed to him for success on the battlefield, but to keep their troops and families safe." She had zoned out halfway through. Well no more history lesson.

Now, I have transported my fair share of raiders in my short mercenary career. Of all of them Ares was absolutely the most annoying raider I have ever met. In her eyes everything could be smashed, shot at, or blown up. I wasn't interested in shooting every moving thing we came across that would only bring more attraction to us.

We had passed by a group of Geckos with their heads buried in some animal, and Ares had almost gotten on her knees begging me to let her shoot them. I told her that the swarm had already riled things up and we didn't want to use guns for now. She solemnly agreed but looked longingly at her eagle that I had on the waist now.

Unfortunately for me that little swarm managed to bring out the worst in the junkyard. Aside from the Geckos we saw I heard a lot of things I didn't like. I made her stop when I heard the all too familiar sound of a Deathclaw sharpening its foot long claws. I turned the corner slowly and was greeted by a large metal wall with debris that stretched for several meters.

I motioned for Ares to move quickly and quietly through the wreckage. As I rounded a corner and saw a large horned head appear from the twisted metal. Its horns curved down past its face that vaguely resembled a human's. It maw was lined with cone shaped teeth strong enough to break through the toughest bones. Its skin was a rough sandpaper color and it was wrinkled like a prune. Beneath the horns were two cloudy eyes that seemed to only barely register a few feet in front of it. The Deathclaw turned and entered its hunting grounds once more and we continued to the North to the camp.

We walked for the rest of the day without much trouble. Ares actually agreed to help me look for water for us to drink and we managed to find four bottles of fresh water. This helped to stop the heat from taking its toll.

As night closed we stopped at a small house that still had most of its frame still surrounding it. I set a fire up and cooked some of the Brahmin steaks I had with me, we ate well and then (upon her request) split a bottle of whiskey she had found in the ruins. It burned going down but made me feel stronger and better. After the meal we took sides of the room to sleep on. As we settled in I pulled out a length of rope about twelve feet long. Ares saw it and the argument began.

"No, no, and no again! You've got my weapons what harm can I do huh?" Typical, trying to talk her way out of it.

"Then what, you're gonna go to sleep like a good girl and wait for me to wake you up? You said it yourself, never trust a raider." I had her at this and even though she squirmed while I fastened the rope she didn't take off running.

"You do know I can get out of this right? I can untie any knot I want. You'll see I'll be outa this thing in no time at all." I had invented the knot holding her in place several years ago and to this day the only person who knows how to undo it is me.

"Ok, have fun with that." I said. I lay down on the hard ground and listened to Ares thrashing and struggling against the bonds. She swore and turned over and was silent. I thought to myself we might actually get back to town with no more problems. I was wrong so very very wrong.

At noon the next day we had finally made it back to the camp and I was relieved to see that everyone was ok even if they had been worried about me as well. I expected a lot of question about what had happened and sure enough they came. I told them about everything that had happened and my plan for Ares. Everyone agreed to this (except the feisty raider of course). Alice spent some time examining my "new" Pip-Boy and she and I toyed with it for a few minutes. I decided that when we got back to Texalt I would defiantly stay in touch with her as a shooting partner.

John had found his glowing box and was now wearing whatever it was he was looking for around his neck in a glass tube. It was in fact emitting a very faint blue light and it must have been very important. He kept checking to make sure that it was there.

I saw Ares looking at it with hungry eyes, and I grabbed her shoulders and pulled her to the cart with a protest of "Hey!" I threw her into the back of the cart and gave her a face that told her not to stay; I asked Phil to watch her, and went to John for a word.

"Did you guys have the same swarm problem as we did?" John asked. I nodded and he shook his head. "Things like that ain't natural and we almost lost your brother there to em. I just want to get home before anything else happens."

"I agree, we'll lock her up each night too. She's dangerous and somewhat crafty. I want her watched at all times. I don't feel like risking loosing anyone." He sighed and looked to his daughter who was watching Ares.

"I can't have anything happen to her. Ya hear me. The last thing I need is…." All at once a shot rang through the air and imbedded itself into John's right shoulder. He hit the ground and Alice ran to his side. I quickly went to the cart and took Ares out and flipped it over to use the metal siding as cover. Phil came to my side and took out his pistol that he had been using. I loaded my magnum and crouched around the corner and took aim.

To my horror there were ten of them all with heavy armoring. I saw Ares out of the corner of my eye chewing her hair smiling. Oh shit they were here for her. I was shot at from all angles and ducked back inside the cart. If John hadn't installed the metal panels we would have all been dead. I reached around and shot randomly. To my dismay no cries of pain were to be heard. Only silence, but then I heard something else entirely.

It was metal on metal stomping towards us. I saw a massive gloved hand grab the top of the cart and flip it over completely revealing the scariest raider I have ever seen. He was seven foot easy and was wearing full metal armor complete with spikes that were darkened at the tips with dried blood. He had a long cruel face that was tanned from hours of marching in the sun. His long black hair flowed freely and was oily and shined in the sunlight. In his hands he held the biggest sledgehammer I have ever seen, except something was wrong with this sledgehammer it had a strange mechanism at the top of it that was making a whirring sound, I had a feeling it wasn't doing that because it was broken.

The cruel looking raider looked at us and smiled darkly. He raised the hammer and everyone scrambled away. When it smashed the ground everything in a ten foot radius was thrown into the air. This included Alice, Phil, John, Ares, the cart, the Brahmin, and myself. We didn't go far up maybe six feet but we were all blasted back by a few meters. I pulled out my gun and shot at him, but my bullets didn't do anything to him. He approached Ares and lifted her up gently and cradled her in his arms like a baby. He set her down and turned back to us raising his hammer once more.

Ares ran away from the blast zone and I saw the end of the hammer slam into the ground. Everyone was blasted back another few meters and Phil's head hit a rock knocking him out cold. Alice flew in my direction this time and as I was thrust back we smashed into each other and landed some seven feet away from the carnage.

The giant then approached John and picked him up by his overalls and looked into his one good eye. He noticed the glowing tube on his neck and smiled maliciously. "We take this one back to Boeing." He said in a deep commanding voice. "The others are of no concern to me. Take what you wish and kill them." He slung John over his shoulder and walked away from us. The other raiders raised their guns and clicked them to the ready. Ares skipped over to my and pulled her gun from my belt, she leaned down to my ear and whispered.

"Well we did have fun didn't we hmm?" She plucked her knives from their holsters and attached them to her thighs. She pressed the gun to my forehead and continued her insane ranting. "You could have come with me, I'd have been the best thing to happen to your short miserable life, but no had to be a goody two shoes didn't you?" In one quick motion she pulled the gun back and pistol whipped my face. It was a lot better than getting that hammer to the face I supposed. "Just be thankful Bone Smasher didn't kill you and these guys will, bye sweetie."

Ares disappeared into the Junkyard along with Bone Smasher who still had John thrown over his shoulder. The raiders raised their guns again and opened fire at us. I grabbed Phil's unconscious body and pulled it to the wagon Alice followed firing on the raiders with an intense rage on her face. She was screaming threats and curses as she mowed down three of them on ten seconds with her .22; I had to pull her back at the last minute as several shotgun shell ripped past her head. She beat my arms off and rounded the corner again to fire off another two shots, one of which hit one of the gun men in the head.

Well, Alice's rage had gotten rid of four of them, but the remaining six were not giving up yet. I looked around for something to use against them. That was when I saw the grenades lying on the ground. I grabbed the nearest one and pulled the pin. I rounded the corner threw the grenade as far as I could. It landed in the ruins and exploded with an intense crash. One of the raiders flew overhead and landed several feet in front of us in a bloody mess of metal, armor, and gore. I pulled another pin and threw blindly into the wreckage, I heard the same blast, but more sounds followed. Metal shifted and smashed. I could hear stone crumbling; dust settling around us. All the firing stopped and I dared a peek out.

The blast had managed to collapse a beam holding up an old platform that was holding 2000 years' worth of debris and rubble. The upward blast had launched the stone into the air and they had beaten two of the raiders to a pulp. Another had been impaled on a piece of rebar and was still clinging to life. I raised my rifle and ended it quickly. I couldn't see where the other two went and that concerned me. I saw someone stumble from the wreckage.

His gun was busted and he was holding a knife. He ran at me and swung it; I ducked down and threw a punch onto his knee. He yelped and took a stab down; I grabbed his wrist and twisted hard. I felt his wrist dis-locate and he dropped the knife. I kicked it away and gave him another punch in the jaw. He responded by pulling out a pistol and aiming it at my chest.

A knife flew through the air and caught the gunman in the arm his pistol fired into the dirt; then I grabbed it and swung it with as much force as possible. For a small blade it did a good job and I was covered with the already too familiar sensation of blood.

I looked to see who had thrown the knife and was surprised to see the other raider. He had tried to hit me and missed! He was now without a weapon and began to run. A shot rang out and he crumpled in the dust. Alice had her .22 raised and now had it on me, again the look of pure rage on her face was horrifying to behold.

"You had one job!" she screamed, "Keep him safe! What about that did you not understand?!" What had happened wasn't my fault. It was my fault, and I realized that she had every right to be angry; I didn't know what to say though. I just bowed my head and let her continue. What she did instead shocked me beyond all recognition.

"I'm going after them." She said firmly, and with that she turned and walked the way the two raiders had.

After several quick minutes of preparation, I had the still unconscious Phil into the back of the wagon, hooked up the Brahmin (miraculously still alive), and done a quick loot for ammo and medical supplies. I decided to try something new, and I hopped on the Brahmin's back. It gave a startled "Moo!" from its left head, but when kicked in the sides it ran faster than any horse I have ever had. Soon we were within the ruins and I was on Alice's trail.

Bone Smasher had said that he and Ares were heading to Boeing; and from what I could remember that settlement had once been occupied by caravaners along with a few emissaries from the NCR out West. Apparently the raiders had snuck in over months and then in the middle of the night had slaughtered everyone in the camp. They took pieces of the metal roofing and made rickety walls surrounding the camp and more metal had been taken to make an arena in the center of the chaos.

Boeing was to the North of where we were right now and I had to find Alice before she went on a death mission. If we were going to save him we were going to need everyone. The worst case scenario was we were all caught and filleted, but I'd like to be able to keep everyone alive as well as destroying the raiders.

I was thinking about Bone Smasher as we galloped through the rubble. His armor was too tough for my normal rounds to pierce it and he probably slept in it so I had two choices. I could aim for his head, which would be difficult due to the fact of his height. My other choice was to riddle him with the Frag Grenades I had found in various boxes and containers. I hoped this would make him remove his armor and make things a little more manageable.

I lifted up my left arm and turned on my Pip-Boy radio. The music made everything seem to pass buy quickly and I almost missed something amazing. I pulled the Brahmin to a complete stop (hard!) and I hopped off the creature and headed back to the large crate I had seen. On the side it was marked_"Fragile Records: Handle with Care!"_

I really hoped that these were what I thought they were. Slowly I lifted the box's lid to reveal almost thirty new records! I didn't even bother to look at them all but I saw names such as Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin and this was enough for me. Despite everything that had happened I smiled for just a second. I picked up the crate and put it in the back of the cart beside Phil and hoped back on my smelly two headed transport. Another kick to the ribs and he was off.

After several hours of speedy scavenging and travel we were finally out of the Junkyard and leaving it behind us. Phil had finally woken up and was avidly asking questions which I wasn't looking forward to answering. We were both looking for any sign of Alice, but couldn't find any some sort of clue to her whereabouts. I decided we would travel until night fall and then continue our search in the morning.

"So after we find her what are we gonna do?" Phil asked. I was a bit apprehensive about telling him my plan. I knew he wouldn't want to do it, but we really didn't have a choice.

"Ok, I need you not to freak out, ok?" I started slowly, "After we find Alice we are going to rescue her father. Even if he's not here with us, we were still hired to help him, and I think this is a pretty good way to help." Phil sighed and shook his head. He was debating things and I didn't want to disrupt him while he did.

"Well, what's your plan then? We can't just storm in there you know." I had been thinking about this and I did have a very good idea. Well it seemed so to me.

"I say we get captured." I said and the result was immediate.

"Wait, what? How is that a good idea?" Phil asked.

I had to convince him quickly or this would never work, "I'll be the one to get captured. Anyone who gets to Boeing is rewarded by competition in the arena. You will pose as the one who caught me and of course you'll be rewarded. Now when I win enough matches I'm going to have you get me out. We find John then get out under the cover of darkness."

"You know that's not a bad idea." He said, "Look I'm tired and my head hurts. Let's camp here for tonight." I nodded my head and I stopped the Brahmin (who was now doing a strange trot). I gave the Brahmin an apple for each mouth and was again responded with a happy "Moo!"

I made a fire and we ate a few cans of Pork and Beans which weren't so bad if you could get past the slimy texture. Afterword's, I sat with my back to the fire watching the sun set and the sky blacken. I had a half empty Nuka Cola bottle that I was slowly drinking. I could hear Phil snoring behind me and decided I'd let him sleep in tomorrow.

After a few minutes the sun was gone completely and the wastes were basked in a bright moon. It was so peaceful and yet heartbreaking to know that out there people were hurting and dying. I felt someone sit next to me and I looked up expecting Phil, instead I saw a very dirty and disheveled Alice.

She looked like hell; her hair was a tangled mess and all places where her skin showed was covered in dust. I could see a tear in her armor and a slim trail of blood leaking from it. I had apparently made some sort of expression at this and she waved a hand, "Don't worry about it." She said, "I, well, I fell off a rock." I couldn't help, but smile as well. "I can't tell you how sorry I am, really…" I stopped her.

"You were angry and scared. You have nothing to apologize about, I'm just glad you found us, and not something likely to eat you." She broke down. After hours of staying strong and braving the wastes alone Alice was crying. I wasn't sure what really to do to comfort her so I gently put an arm around her and let her cry. "We're going to get him back, I swear." She looked up at me with tears glistening on her face and feebly nodded. I helped her to the back of the cart where we used several strips of cloth to make her a cot. She threw her arms around me again and then settled herself in.

In about ten minutes she was asleep and I was left awake, watching the moon in the sky as I had so many countless nights before.

I broke my promise and woke Phil up a little earlier than I had intended so I could explain what had happened in the night. He was happy to have Alice back and we all started modifying the plan to perfection. Just as the sun rose we were gone and hunting for a raider.

Phil was going to wear a dead raider's armor and escort me to Boeing as a captive. There I would compete in the arena and pick off weapons from my dead competitors. Then I would break out of my cell find John and escape. First we would need to find a disguise.

We found two poorly equipped raiders torturing a small dog on a ridge and I pulled out my crowbar and cracked the first ones skull open, the second swung a pool cue at me and I blocked it. I kicked him firmly in the chest and he flew off the ridge onto the hard rocks below.

Quickly Phil stripped the body of the cracked skull raider. While Alice was tending to the small dog (It would live) and Phil was getting his gruesome uniform on I was making myself dirty. If I was to make myself seem a prisoner I'd have to look beat up. Alice herself already looked like partial raider so she and Phil were to be my captors and make money off me fighting in the arena. The other part of the plan was to not die.

Now that I really looked beat up I gave Alice and Phil my weapons and told them to punch me. After a reassurance they did so and they didn't hold back; it hurt a lot. I doubled over and let the pain pass through my body. I stood up and again headed into the dessert.

After many hours of walking and hurt ribs we finally reached Boeings walls. It was a grisly sight, on top of the ten foot metal walls were spears with heads fastoned upon them. Hanging from chains were dismembered corpses and animal carcases. We could unfortunately hear Boeing as well; screams, cries, and moans all berated our ears. Oddly enough we could hear laughing and people talking merrily, all these sounds melded together to make a horrible song. I didn't want to go in there, but we had to.

We approached the gates and had guns aimed at us immediately. Several raiders came done and Phil went to work "Hey hey, boys gots me a good one for the arena. He sure put up one hell of a fight." Damn he was good. The raiders eyed me suspiciously, but bought it and lowered their weapons. One approached me and slammed a lead pipe into my back. I hit the ground and let them drag me into the town.

I closed my eyes to try and block out what I could hear and smell. The entire town was filthy and I could feel my pants being slicked with grime and muck. The two raiders led me down a flight of stairs and I could smell urine and waste, I opened my eyes and I saw cells all around me. They were filled with people ranging from brutes who looked excited for their next fight to people who were about to die of starvation. There were creatures in the cages as well, everything from Radscorpions, to a Cazador in the corner. I was thrown into an empty cell with filthy hay for matting.

They gave me a bowl of dirty water and something that looked oddly like dog biscuits and raw meat. I had made sure to eat plenty before we got here and I snuck several cooked pieces of meat in with me. I could only hope that my companions had gotten through with their end of the plan.

I tried to get some sleep, but was unable to due to the horrible smell. I lay awake and listened to the sounds of torture and rape around me. I sat up and planned the ways that we would escape. Just as I was beginning to feel tired and debating sleep a raider pushed open my cell door and screamed for me to get into the arena.

"Hope you like ghouls." She said, "We have three just for you!"


End file.
